This is a simple preparation for cooking white fish fillets. I used skinless grouper fish fillets because the skin can be strong tasting and unpleasant. I let the fish sit in milk and a mixture of onions, fennel, celery seed, bay leaf and thyme. Then I simply pan-fried the fish, basted it with clarified butter and waited until the flesh turned opaque.

Grouper has succulent, moist meat on the inside if cooked properly. Its mild, slightly sweet taste is great to introduce to children. Baby Aria loved it. I think her favorite part was that I let her drizzle lemon juice over her fish.

Xôi lá dứa is a very popular snack/dessert in Vietnam. It's made of pandan-flavored steamed sticky rice covered in sweetened, fragrant coconut milk. Sticky rice can be flavored in many ways and there are plenty of savory versions as well, but our favorite is the one prepared with pandan leaves. To save time and add extra flavor, I used store-bought pandan paste in addition to the pandan leaves and also added coconut powder and coconut milk. Don't be fooled by the vegan aspect of this festive dessert, I serve it in small portions because of its rich properties.

The more authentic way of serving xôi lá dứa is to present it family-style on a large platter and to pair the sticky rice with freshly-grated coconut shreds and powdered, sweetened peanut and sesame garnish.

If you were born in the 80s and lived in France, you probably know of the marble cake called Le Savane de Papy Brossard.Ça a bercé mon enfance, which I'd translate to "it sweetened my childhood". This coffee cake is a marbrécake. The beauty of this cake is its appealing look once sliced with its gorgeously marbled, streaked appearance made of vanilla and chocolate.

A generous amount of quality butter and a little milk made the cake moist and fluffy while milk chocolate provided the contrast in color needed for this sweet treat. I think the result was very close to the one I had when I was a child. My hope is that baby Aria will keep the same fond memories of this chocolate marble cake once she grows up!

The idea of eating hot soup during May sounds strange to many people. But in tropical countries, consuming hot broth at any time of the day (even for breakfast!) is normal. Odd as it is, hot liquid on a hot day does seem to help your body stay cool. With this factoid and the heat spike we've been experiencing in the Bay Area, I prepared bún canh đồ biển.

It has a sweet, red-colored broth (I used annatto seed oil to color it). The soup is fairly soft in texture: round, thick noodles are used and cá hồng (red snapper), crab meat, shredded lettuce, bean sprouts and sugar snap peas are added at the last minute.